vannl95's review
5.0
Some of the pieces I had read before, but the ones I hadn’t didn’t disappoint. My favorites were the probably the very first story and the final chapters, where Branch tells stories that are specifically close to his heart — or touch him personally. The Iowa tornado & murder story I had heard about from my time as a reporter in Iowa, and the way he frames it is so in-tune with the Iowa culture. I love that Branch approaches his stories in a non-judgmental way— he could be writing about sheep hunting or climbing Everest, and you’ll come away with an understanding of why people do what they do.
lynnfrance's review
4.0
Well written and enjoyable stories about speed cubing, alligator wrestling, extreme dog grooming, etc.
anjreading's review
2.0
A collection of articles by Branch exploring the edges of the sports world, and rather a mixed bag for me. The story of skiers caught in an avalanche had me riveted throughout, while a few other offerings went on a bit too long or weren't my cup of tea. This needed better editing, as the multi-part stories had too much repetition. And as much as Branch wanted to say these were all united in his chosen theme of the eponymous "Sidecountry", there really was not a connection or flow from one story to the next. He's a very good writer, but he should have had an equally excellent editor instead of just cutting and pasting his favorite articles over the years into a collection. 2.5 stars.
mscarle's review
5.0
Suffers due to the format - there's repetition in the multipart articles. Normally I'm picky enough to bump something down to a 4* for that, but then I found myself tearing up in public at the final story and realized it was too good for that.